Why did director Tran Thanh, known for his billion-dollar films, lose?

In the race for the Golden Lotus Award, Tran Thanh held the upper hand with two winning entries: "Mai" and "The Four Vengeful Figures". However, the billion-dollar director was defeated by Dang Thai Huyen and her film "Red Rain".

Returning to Ho Chi Minh City after a decade, the 24th Vietnam Film Festival has therefore attracted more attention than ever before from filmmakers, professionals, and film enthusiasts alike.

The race for the Golden Lotus Award has therefore become intense and fierce, as the list of nominees in the feature film category includes 16 works, the majority of which come from leading and reputable directors of contemporary Vietnamese cinema.

In there, Red Rain and Tomorrow They were considered fierce rivals in the race for the most important award. Ultimately, Dang Thai Huyen's revolutionary war film won, amidst the applause of guests, filmmakers, and generations of actors present at the ceremony.

Tran Thanh once again missed the opportunity to win the gold trophy at the most important film award, after about 5 years behind the camera with 4 films grossing over 100 billion VND.

Red rain 'defeats' apricot blossoms.

Out of the 16 films competing for the Golden Lotus Award in the feature film category, Tran Thanh has two films in his portfolio. Tomorrow and The Four Assassins . These are two projects released during the Lunar New Year holiday each year and recorded enviable box office revenue figures. Among them, Tomorrow (2024) revenue With 551 billion VND , it is the second highest-grossing film in the history of Vietnamese cinema. The Four Revengeful Ones (2025) also helps Tran Thanh to pocket more 330 billion VND .

Tran Thanh entered the competition for the award with an initial advantage in terms of numbers. However, the opposite happened when neither of the director's two works were announced as winners at the Golden Lotus or Silver Lotus Awards.

The Four Revengeful Ones It didn't even make the final list of nominees.

Red Rain wins big at this year's Vietnam Film Festival. Photo: Phuong Lam.

Accordingly, the cinematic works include Red Rain (Dang Thai Huyen) Take your mother away and abandon her. (Mo Hong Jin), Battle of the Aerial (Ham Tran) Underground tunnels (Bui Thac Chuyen) Detective Kien (Victor Vu) and Tomorrow (Tran Thanh) are among the names selected by the judging panel from 16 entries. A common feature of these projects is that they all generated revenue exceeding [amount]. 150 billion VND and received positive feedback from both critics and audiences upon its release.

However, according to the jury of the Vietnam Film Festival, the selection of a film to receive the Golden Lotus Award does not depend entirely on box office performance. Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Ta Quang Dong, head of the festival's steering committee, emphasized that the jury bases its evaluation on many criteria such as the quality of the work, artistry, audience appeal, and relevance to the times.

Finally, the Silver Lotus Award was presented to Underground tunnels, Battle of the Aerial and Sister-in-law . This is also the first time that this award has honored three works at the same time. Meanwhile, Red Rain Winning the Golden Lotus Award.

Victory of Red Rain This was not surprising. Even before the awards ceremony, Dang Thai Huyen's brainchild had been predicted by experts and filmmakers to win the top prize. In addition, Red Rain He was also highly praised by the judging panel in several other categories such as Best Production Designer, Best Visual Effects, and Best Supporting Actor (Phuong Nam).

Released on the occasion of Vietnam's National Day, September 2nd. Red Rain It created an unprecedented phenomenon in the Vietnamese film market. The film topped the box office charts for a month straight and set box office records. It attracted 8.1 million viewers nationwide and surpassed the previous milestone. With 715 billion VND , it is the highest-grossing Vietnamese film in history. From the time of its release until the end of its theatrical run, Red Rain It consistently becomes a focal point of discussion among both film professionals and moviegoers. With its scale, level of investment, massive size, and unprecedented reach, Red Rain It deserves to be considered a blockbuster war film of Vietnamese cinema in the last decade.

Moreover, Dang Thai Huyen's film continues its journey further as it was selected by the Ministry of Culture to represent Vietnam in the preliminary selection for the 98th Academy Awards in the Best International Feature Film category.

Reasons for Tran Thanh's defeat.

In terms of scale, investment level, impact, influence, and reach, Tomorrow Tran Thanh's song, however, seems to be at a disadvantage when compared to... Red Rain . Mai's story is simple, revolving around the love between Mai (Phuong Anh Dao) and Sau (Tuan Tran), along with family conflicts and a generation gap. The film's setting is primarily an old apartment building in Ho Chi Minh City. While Tran Thanh undeniably shows progress in terms of technique and filmmaking style, the work still reveals some limitations in both the script and storytelling. In many scenes, the director appears greedy, cramming in too many details and showing off his technical skills, which detracts from the viewing experience. Tomorrow It wasn't quite perfect on screen.

While The Four Revengeful Ones This is yet another step backward for Tran Thanh in the film industry. Just when he was making his mark with... Mai , a film released during the 2025 Lunar New Year, has been criticized for its quality. The script lacks investment, is somewhat superficial, and sometimes indulges in silly humor. As the film progresses, it becomes increasingly weak and chaotic in its storytelling and message delivery. Furthermore, Tran Thanh's perspective on relationships and marriage among young people lacks originality and originality.

Tran Thanh's films have not yet been honored with the highest award at the Vietnam Film Festival.

That could be the reason why, despite participating in the competition, The Four Revengeful Ones Yet, it did not appear on the final list of nominees.

At this year's film festival, in addition to Tomorrow and The Four Revengeful Ones Not only was he not honored, but Tran Thanh also missed the opportunity to win another important award - Best Director. The nominations included other directors such as Ham Tran, Dang Thai Huyen, and Khuong Ngoc. Ultimately, Ham Tran won the gold trophy.

During his approximately 5 years behind the camera, Tran Thanh has produced 4 works, including: The Godfather, Mrs. Nu's House, Mai and The four assassins . The director's films grossed over a certain amount. 1.8 trillion VND . However, at the Vietnam Film Festivals, the aforementioned projects by the director have never been honored with the highest award. The best achievement is Godfather He won the Silver Lotus Award at the 22nd Vietnam Film Festival. In this project, Tran Thanh served as co-director with Vu Ngoc Dang.

Tran Thanh himself hasn't yet won the Golden Cup for Best Director. Nevertheless, his success... Tomorrow This also helped the cast of the film shine. Among them, Phuong Anh Dao was honored in the Best Actress category, while Hong Dao received the gold trophy for Best Supporting Actress at this year's Vietnam Film Festival.

Source: https://baoquangninh.vn/vi-sao-dao-dien-nghin-ty-tran-thanh-thua-cuoc-3386439.html